West Mecca Church Parsonage

PARSONAGE NEEDED FOR MINISTRY, FAMILY HEALTH

Zane Shiery, age 12, is losing his childhood. Piercing and debilitating headaches already have cost him an entire school year. We are desperate to restore his health.

Zane’s dad, the Rev. Michael Shiery, is suffering major breathing issues. He’s struggled with voice and air more than one Sunday morning trying to deliver sermons that will feed his growing flock at West Mecca (Ohio) Bible Methodist Church.

The problems are linked to an unhealthy parsonage in which at least three types of mold have been identified. Ongoing attempts to remove or seal the problems so far have not resolved the issue, but we continue to drain the church building fund in the process of trying to fix it.

In the meantime, Mrs. Evie Shiery and Zane have moved in with relatives in another state so that Zane can thrive and be an active boy again. Their daughter, Evie Marie, 17, splits time between her father, and her mother and brother. The forced separation is a heartbreaking hardship on their family and the entire West Mecca Bible Methodist Church family.

We were already raising money for a new parsonage as a logistical necessity. Two years ago, our congregation turned our church in the city over to an urban ministry and moved into a rural church that was closing. A year ago, we brought the Shiery family in because of their heart to lead this new commission.

We have kept that little country church open, and we are making an impact in the community. New families are coming in, we are stretching out, and we have laid out an outreach plan to sow into the lives of our neighbors. A Part of that goal is to buy a parsonage in the neighborhood so that we can be fully immersed in our new community and ministry. The current parsonage sits twelve miles, twenty-some minutes and two townships away—next door to our old church.

However, the health issues afflicting our new pastoral family—the Shierys arrived a year ago—have ramped up the urgency. We either find a new home, or we will lose a wonderful, godly family.

It is critical for the growth of our church, and for the health and physical restoration of our pastor’s family that we obtain a new parsonage. Properties that meet our needs are range from $130,000 to $170,000; we have about a quarter of that. The market is so tight that properties are snapped up within a week of going on the market.

The school year begins in September. We need to assure our pastoral family that we have a healthy home in line for them before then.

 We would appreciate the help from anyone who would like to sow seeds into our ministry.